A quarter of Connecticut residents are obese

Updated 11:44 pm, Thursday, September 4, 2014

About a quarter of adults in Connecticut are obese -- yet that's still considerably more svelte than most of its fellow states.

That's according to the annual "State of Obesity" report from the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The report, formerly known as "F as in Fat," records adult obesity rates in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., and ranks states from most to least obese.

Connecticut was the ninth least-obese state in the nation, and adult obesity levels in the state didn't increase from last year's report.

"I think we should not be patting ourselves on the back," said Dr. Stuart Zarich, Bridgeport Hospital chief of cardiology. "We're moving in the right direction, but there's more work to be done."

Obesity is mainly determined by body-mass index, a measure of body fat based on height and weight. A BMI of 30 or higher is considered obese and a BMI of 25 to 29.9 is considered overweight. Weight is linked to a variety of other health problems, including diabetes, hypertension and heart disease.

Nationwide, weight continues to be a problem, said Jeff Levi, executive director of the Trust for America's Health. "We've found ourselves with a front-row seat to the toll obesity has taken on the country," said Levi during a Thursday conference call.

According to the report, Mississippi and West Virginia tied for having the highest adult obesity rate in the country, at 35.1 percent, while Colorado had the lowest, at 21.3 percent.

Adult obesity rates increased from last year in Alaska, Delaware, Idaho, New Jersey, Tennessee and Wyoming. Obesity rates in Connecticut didn't change from last year's report to this year's. In fact, obesity rates in most states have stabilized, Levi said, but "they've stabilized at an unacceptably high rate."

But, just because there hasn't been a recent spike in obesity here doesn't mean that the condition hasn't risen in Connecticut.

In 2004, the state's adult obesity rate was 18.9 percent and in 1990, it was 10.4 percent.

Although some progress has been made on stemming the rise of obesity, Levi said it's a complicated problem that won't be quickly fixed.

"This isn't a problem that has either a single solution or a single cause," he said.

Rather, the rise of the country's obesity rates comes from a mix of factors, including the increasing popularity of fast food and a drop in physical activity, Levi said.

In urban areas, such as Bridgeport, there are areas known as food deserts, which make it difficult to get nutritious foods, she said. And throughout the state, most residents lead busy lives that sometimes make it tough to fit in exercise.